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Topic : 07/06 A Teen's Pregnancy

Number of Replies: 160

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Created on : Wednesday, July 01, 2009, 05:14:18 pm

Author : DrPhilBoard1

Imagine your 15-year-old daughter announces that she's pregnant. As a parent, you would have to make tough decisions. This is the reality for Dale and Kelly. Dale says they had the all-American family until their teenaged daughter, Brittney, revealed she was pregnant. How did this honor roll student and star soccer player end up in this predicament? Dr. Phil sits down with the teen and asks her some hard questions. Is she confronting reality or living in her own world? Brittney has not decided if her future involves her being a parent. What do her parents hope she chooses? Dr. Lisa Masterson, OB/GYN and co-host of The Doctors, meets with Brittney and three other young women who found themselves in similar situations as teens. Will their stories help the mom-to-be make one of the biggest decisions of her life? And, Brittney and her mom accompany Jody as she travels across the country to pick up her adopted child. Emotions escalate and Brittney ends up in tears. Follow the drama as this family struggles through this tense time that will dramatically change the course of their lives. Join the discussion.

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Worried for her

Here is a 16 year old girl that has no idea what to do. She doesn't know if she wants to keep the child, or put it up for adoption, no matter what she says. She is totally scared, and with NO SUPPORT as a child this age has, she is totally lost. She is too immature to have this child. Doesn't have the slightest idea what raising a child is like including the responsibilities. This situation is truly worried-some.

Please open your eyes people and see what she is going through. Not what she is saying. Look in hereyes when she responds to Dr. Phils questions. She needs honest family support. Not the crap being fed from her parents. They need to face reality and accept the situation, and be truly happy for a grandchild. They need to offer help and emotional support, or at the least support. She needs a support group that will truly accept her and her child.

Teen Pregnancy

I can relate to what this girl is going through i was pregnant at the age of 15. My mother did not find out till i was seven months along my mother was upset my stepdad said there was no way that a baby was going to come into his house and he tried to make me give her up for adoption i fought to keep my baby and she was born christmas day in 1992 and she is know a gorgeous 16 year old. I had to grow up fast i didnt depend on anyone to take care of her, her dad and i both worked and went to school to provide the best we could for her.. She will be a junior this year and she is an honor student... yes i wish i would have waited but i wouldnt change it for the anything. I am the type of person that deals with what god deals to me. I could go on for hours on this subject but it is up to Brittany to decide if she is ready to grow up and take on the resposibility of raising a baby... I couldnt imagine someone else raising a child of mine.....

07/06 A Teen's Pregnancy

This gal chose to have sex because she wasn't getting validation at home? Give those of us who actually watched the show a break! This gal got nothing but validation at home. Her parents did nothing but brag about how "great" she was all the time. Too much, if you ask me. Gave her a big head and even bigger entitlement mentality.

please. When your parents aren't helping you with the hardest decision of your life validation isn't the problem. Wake up and realize that the parents are the problem. Yes the girl made a bad decision but YOU have certainly made one too. How can you give your child too much validation??? That is very idiotic. You can never do that!! That's what the children need to hear today. That's why kids are running away and killing themselves. They need to know that their parents are proud of them or they will lose them. One way or the other!

You have support

I am seventeen and a half and i anm now 12weeks and 6days pregnant.I didnt do it on purpose and i dont regret it one bit..some days i wish i had waited longer but things happen for a reason and god doesnt give u more then u can handle. Like i said we didnt do it on purpose.yes we were havin sex without a condom and no i wanst on birth control and no my mom didnt know i was sexual active. But me and my bf had had sex many of times without a condom and nuthin ever happened.And i can admit that at one time we was tryin to get pregnant and when we notcied it wasnt goin to happen we stopped tryin but no we werent using condoms. But we ddint do anything bout it and we do not regret anything that we did or didnt do..u can judge me all u want but there is some things that u dont know bout me.I do have money to raise my child and my bf the father of the baby is goin to help raise his baby as well,and we are very happy and cant wait till the baby is here.by then we will both be 18 and yes trust me we both will finish high skool no matter what happens..Its goin to be hard dont get me wrong but everything happens for a reason.my mom will help me through this and is very supportive and no she is not goin to raise my baby so if thats what u think u are wrong.she works first shift and i have to go to skool then to.we will figure it out and we have so many ppl that are willing to help me out with the baby bc they know how i feel about the baby and know that i want this baby and support me the whole way.And i couldnt ask for anything more,stp judging girls that get pregnant yung.every girl is different and each girls life is different so they will decide wat is goin to be best for them.INCLUDIN ME!

You say it wasn't planned. Okay. Having underage sex, not responsible, looking like you are getting help from everyone you know. Great. I am proud you are taking responsibility for your child. That takes away most of my worry. It is great of the support you have. Your situation is nothing like Britney's. Please read my post. She doesn't have true and honest support like you. I never judge anyone for any reason, and I am behind you, even though you were not responsible, but as you said, everyone makes mistakes. Britney needs what you have, SUPPORT.

Gratefully Put Up for Adoption

If only I could help Brittany see the postive outcomes of adoption from the perspective and voice of the child she is carrying. I am now 34 years old and was put up for adoption by my biological teen mother. My cousin was also adopted. We were both fortunate to know just a few facts about our biological mothers. Both were 16 and did not have the resources to care for us. Our biological mothers loved us so much that they gave us the life they knew they couldn't. I thank God everyday that both biological mothers had the selflessness, strength, and faith to let us go into the hands of a family who was able to provide a life only they could dream. There are so many families who are unable to conceive and not only have the resources but a world of love to provide for a baby such as yours. Yes, it's Brittany's choice and unfortunately her baby's voice cannot yet be heard...but from a child who couldn't speak herself 34 years ago I hope Brittany will hear a voice loud and clear how grateful and thankful I am that my biological mother understood that sometimes love means letting go and that out of some of the worst mistakes can come miracles.

Pregnant at 15

Brittney if you get the chance to read this I wish you all the luck in the world. I too was pregnant at 16 however my parents were very supportive, very disappointed I might add but they were there for me. It was a long and difficult road and my parents forced me to take on the responcibility as mommy. I was able to get on assistance to pay for day care through the state while I finished high school and I got with my guidence advisor and took some collage classes in place of my high school classes to shorten my day and gradguate early. I worked part time in the evenings to pay for diapers and was able to get food stamps and wic to provide for the baby. My parents let me live at home untill I was 19 and then my son and I got a little one bedroom apt but it was our home. I didnt have much of a life outside of my son but I wouldn't change it for the world. I think you are a wonderfull girl and I know you feel so alone right now but your not. There is so much help out there and if you are truly set on keeping your baby may God bless you.

A Grandmother's Response

I think Brittany's parents are only interested in what they want and how they feel. They do care about their daughter, but they are only escalating the situation. I was 17 when I had my daughter, my parents were 100% supportive and I still did everything for that baby.that same daughter is now 13. I am SCARED TO DEATH of her getting pregnant, but if it did happen I would be supportive and we would come up with a plan together. It is possible to help her without enabling her. I also think Brittany's parents are equating help with compliance or rewarding her behavior. Believe me, the hardship that comes with a child, should she keep it, will be punishment enough!

My precious granddaughter is also now 13. My daughter, her mother, was a little older than you (19),

but was unwed. My husband was very much connected to our community and church, and his comment was "It's the end of the world" and mine was "It's the end of the world as we know it". Abortion was

suggested by the father's parents. That was never an option for our family. We offered support to our

daughter and never said she should marry the father of her child. We were there for her in whatever way

she needed. I was present in the delivery room, along with the father, and it was very exciting to see

my grandchild being born. Soon after the delivery, the father gave me his bracelet required by the

hospital, and he left. I was then allowed to take the baby into the nursery to be weighed and measured.

What a wonderful day!!!! Over the past few years, there have been some problems, but now everyone adores her and we all know what a blessing she really was. My daughter married a great guy who really loves my granddaughter like she is his own. My granddaughter is fully aware of how she came to be here and why she has two dads and more grandparents than most kids. She knows she is loved, and that's

what matters.

Well, good luck to you...it sounds like you made the right decision too!!!!

I did it

I am 18 & a mother to a two year old boy. I too got pregnant at 15 & had my son at 16. I made my choice to keep him & step up & take full responsibility for my actions. My family & friends were there to support me throughout the whole pregnancy. Brittany & her parents need to understand that getting pregnant at a young age doesn't mean it's the end of the world. Just last week I graduated from high school, walked across stage with my classmates & received my diploma on time, just like every one else. Before I got pregnant I had all D's & F's in school. My son has made me grow up & realize there's much more to life then I thought. My son has saved my life in more ways then I can type on here.

I think Brittany needs to do what SHE wants to do. If she thinks she can take responsibility & be a good mom, then why not? her family doesn't look like they can't afford to help her out. However, if she doesn't think she can step up to the plate maybe it would be better to give the child up for adoption.

So many people are so against teen pregnancy. But let me tell you a little about my past before you make that decision. I used to be a big druggie. As I said before, I made very bad grades. I failed my entire freshman year (& i still graduated on time!!) & I even tried to commit suicide. I completely planned on dropping as soon as I could. That is, until I got pregnant. When I got pregnant I completely stopped smoking, doing drugs, & every bad habbit I had. I started getting B's in school & growing up. I decided I needed to do well in school so I could move on to college & make good money to support my son, I also wanted to be a good role model to him. Looking back now I can't believe I thought life was so bad I wanted to end my it, but let me tell you, I swear my son completely saved my life. I can gaurentee you I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for him. & if I were here I would be a high school dropout druggie loser.

I just want people to understand before they start critisizing teen moms, it really isn't the end of the world!! I hope Brittany makes the right decision in keeping her baby. I believe she might feel the connection my son & I share with her own child.

Britney is a spoiled brat

I am so angry watching this child! I just want to slap that self satisfied smirk off her face! You don't have to be especially bright to see that she is selfishly going to have this child and then ignore it. She will NOT be bothered by the constant demands of a newborn. It will become another throw away kid. A child is horribly scarred when dumped off on grandparents while mom is too busy being a child to take care of him. Yes, she made the decision to have sex, but why should this child have to suffer for her selfishness? The only good that can come of this is adoption, but that takes the selflessness of a true mother and Britney can't even spell selflessness, muchless feel and act upon it.

Grow up, you brat. You need this baby like another hole in your empty head.